New UK homes to have superfast broadband

@flickr.com/photos/107803477@N08/14607738627, CC BY 2.0

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• The government has worked with Openreach – BT’s local access network business – and the Home Builders Federation (HBF) on an agreement which aims to deliver superfast broadband connectivity to new build properties in the UK.
• The new deal will see fibre based broadband offered to all new developments either for free or as part of a co-funded initiative. It is estimated that more than half of all new build properties can be connected to fibre broadband free of charge to developers.
• As part of the agreement, Openreach is introducing an online planning tool for homebuilders. This will tell them whether properties in a given development can be connected to fibre for free, or if a contribution is needed from the developer to jointly fund the deployment of the local fibre network.
• Effective immediately, the housing industry will have access to a ‘rate card’ from Openreach which details the fixed cost contributions required by homebuilders in those cases where joint funding is required. Openreach will make a significant contribution itself before seeking any funds from developers. HBF will promote and support uptake of the co-funding offer amongst their members, and emphasise the need to plan for connectivity early in the development.
• This new offer sets a high bar for all suppliers and developers in the market, and Government will be working with industry closely to monitor success over the next year.
• Digital Economy Minister Ed Vaizey said: “The government’s ambition to build 1 million new homes over the course of this Parliament will house families and future generations to come. Broadband connectivity is just one thing that home buyers now expect when buying a new build, so this industry-led push to make superfast, or indeed ultrafast, broadband speeds available by default in new homes represents a very important step in meeting the UK’s digital needs.”
• Clive Selley, CEO Openreach, said: “This is an important step towards bringing fibre broadband to as many new build properties as possible. We recognise that high speed broadband connectivity is a major factor for homeowners when deciding to buy a house. That’s why we’re offering to deliver fibre to all new build developments either for free or as a co-funded model. With the support of the HBF we’ve delivered a series of measures to give developers greater clarity, choice and more funding. Today’s announcement underlines Openreach’s commitment to further extend its fibre network – which reaches more than 24m premises – to benefit even more communities across the country.”
• Stewart Baseley, executive chairman of the HBF added: “Housebuilders are constantly striving to deliver on and surpass the expectations of customers as we continue to see housing supply grow. Broadband speeds are an increasingly important factor in the home buying process and this offer to developers will see more new build purchasers benefit from the very best connectivity to go alongside the many other advantages of purchasing a brand new home.”Source: Advanced-television.com, 

Read More........ → February 05, 2016

India: 20 UHD channels by 2020

"Videocon d2h in use" by Aravind Sivaraj - Own work. Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Commons

By Chris Forrester. October 9, 2015: A panel at MIPCOM heard Indian broadcasting experts predict a buoyant future for Ultra-HD channels in India. New 4K programming is coming online now, with three India DTH operators about to show their first 4K Bollywood movie, Bajrangi Bhaijaan, on October 11th. Star India will broadcast the film, while Videocon d2h, Tata Sky and Airtel Digital TV will all show the hit movie which stars India’s top male star Salman Khan. The movie will re-open some of India’s 4K efforts which have stumbled somewhat since the ending of this past winter’s International World Cup cricket coverage. But Videocon d2h’s deputy CEO Rohit Jain said Videocon d2h is very much focusing on innovation as a key differentiator and Ultra-HD is a part of this attempt to be better than its rivals. Star, for example, will not continue with 4K after the movie’s screening, at least for the time being. Videocon d2h is believed to have around 8,000-9,000 4K subscribers and currently its 24/7 service is ‘free’ to its HD subscribers. Videocon d2h has its own 4K-ready set-top box while broadcasters also depend on access via built-in 4K functionality on ‘smart’ Ultra-HD displays. Tata Sky is said to have some 5,000 4K subs while Airtel reportedly has around 1,000 subs. Jain says that the main obstacle to greater take-up is a lack of understanding as to what the technology offers. Local production company iTV is making 4K programming (for the TERN-backed Insight Channel) as is TravelXP. Travel XP already has an HD channel on air, and is expected to launch a full-time UHD service over India and the Middle East by April 2016. Mumbai-based Prashant Chothani, CEO at TravelXP says they are wholly committed to UHD with some 50 hours in production now. BT Media & Broadcast Enterprises’s VP Mark Wilson-Dunn, responsible for bringing the ICC cricket World Cup signals from Australia to India, suggested that India “at a minimum” could have 20 channels. His fellow-panellists, however, were less optimistic. Chothani talked about a half-dozen, while local journalist and media-watcher Anil Wanvari talked only of “about four or five”. Videocon d2h’s Jain, the only current 4K broadcaster, said he was very happy to accommodate any number of UHD channels and they – and the industry – would find the bandwidth to carry the channels. “The numbers could be anything, 10, 20, 40 who really knows today. What we have not done enough yet is in education, and content, and we have to appeal to more consumers who will pay.” Source: http://advanced-television.com

Read More........ → February 04, 2016

BBC Trust call for proper funding process

By BBC (BBC) [Public domain or Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

The BBC Trust is arguing that a proper process for setting the BBC’s funding should be built into the new Charter for the first time. To protect the BBC’s independence, the Trust believes the process needs to be fairer, more transparent, and more accountable, and give the public a formal say in setting the BBC’s funding in future. An independent report commissioned from the Policy Institute at King’s College London shows that over time, there have been successive risks to the independence of the BBC or to the perception of its independence, most recently in the process by which the July 2015 funding agreement was made. It suggests practical ideas to protect independence in the future. The Trust also commissioned reports from Oxford University economist Professor Dieter Helm CBE, and City University’s Dr Xeni Dassiou, to look at the role that independent regulators play in determining funding requirements in other sectors and if there is any possible read-across to the BBC. In its analysis of these reports, the Trust sets out its support for a range of measures suggested by King’s that could be incorporated into the next Charter:

• A more regularised and formal process for setting the level of BBC funding;
• Giving the public more say in future licence fee settlements, such as through public consultation; and
• Should the BBC be governed by an independent regulator in future, for that regulator to have a specific role in assessing the BBC’s funding requirements and in advising the Government on the level of BBC funding and the level of the licence fee.

According to BBC Trust Chairman Rona Fairhead, the public strongly supports the independence of the BBC. “As the BBC’s funding is an important part of that independence, funding decisions need to be made on a fair and transparent basis. In future we want the process to be put on a much more formal footing, including involving the public in decision-making and building these requirements into the Charter. We will be urging the Government to include these changes in the coming months.” In its analysis of the reports by Professor Helm and Dr Dassiou, the Trust notes that pure economic regulation of the BBC would be a very radical change and would not take account of the BBC’s unique cultural and social value. However, some aspects from other regulatory systems could be read across. In particular, consideration should be given to a formal role for any future independent BBC regulator in decision-making about the BBC’s funding. Source: http://advanced-television.com

Read More........ → January 21, 2016